U2's Bono reveals he wears dark glasses as he's suffered from glaucoma for 20 years

"You're not going to get this out of your head now and you will be saying 'Ah, poor old blind Bono" (Image: Getty)

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U2 frontman Bono has revealed he has suffered from glaucoma for many years, prompting his continual use of dark glasses.

The star said he has had the condition - a build-up of pressure in the eyeball which can damage the optic nerve and lead to blindness if not treated - for around two decades.

Many had assumed his ever-present sunglasses - even indoors - were a rock star affectation, but he explained during a recording of tonight's Graham Norton Show for BBC1 that they are to help with his vision problem.

Glaucoma can make the eyes more sensitive to light, causing sufferers to use dark glasses to alleviate difficulties.

Presenter Norton asked whether the singer ever removes his shades, to which Bono replied: "This is a good place to explain to people that I've had glaucoma for the last 20 years.

"I have good treatments and I am going to be fine."

He added: "You're not going to get this out of your head now and you will be saying 'Ah, poor old blind Bono."

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Early diagnosis can mean further sight deterioration can be prevented - with laser treatment, eye drops and surgery used to stop it worsening - but the damage to the optic nerve cannot be undone.

In 2005 the star played down his condition, saying the sunglasses were simply because his eyes were sensitive to flash lights.

"Very sensitive eyes to light," he said in an interview with Rolling Stone magazine.

"If somebody takes my photograph, I will see the flash for the rest of the day. My right eye swells up."

But the Irish performer admitted his shades are handy for others reasons too.

"It's part vanity, it's part privacy and part sensitivity," he said.

U2 were on the show to promote their new album, Songs Of Innocence, which was released commercially this week after previously being given away to half a billion iTunes customers, a controversial move which upset some people who said they did not want it automatically added to their music libraries.

Speaking about the furore, Bono told Norton: "We wanted to do something fresh but it seems some people don't believe in Father Christmas.

"All those people who were uninterested in U2 are now mad at U2. As far as we are concerned, it's an improvement."

The album is expected to go into the top five this weekend, but will be the group's first album since Achtung Baby in 1991 which will not debut at number one in the UK chart.

* The Graham Norton Show is on BBC1 at 10.35pm tonight, with other guests Robert Downey Jr, Stephen Fry and Robert Duvall.

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